Carbonaceous fuel.



W. H. ALDRICH.

CARBONACEOUS FUEL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB.26,191Z

1,124,382, Patented Jan.12,1915.

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WILLIAM HENRY ALDRICH, OF PASADENA, CALIFORNIA.

CARBONACEOUS FUEL.

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Application filed February 26, 1912.

T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, l-ViLLIAM HENRY AL- Dnrcr-r, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pasadena, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Carbonaceous Fuel, of which the following is a specification.

In southern California and other localities great quantities of liquid hydrocarbon having an asphaltic base are produced, but heretofore no method of treatment has been devised whereby the art of smelting iron ore or pig iron may be conducted therewith in a practical and satisfactory manner.

An object of the invention is to produce from liquid hydrocarbon a fuel with which the art of smelting may be practically and satisfactorily conducted.

Another object of this invention is to provide a superior fuel for smelting and other purposes having a maximum B. T. U. value.

The accompanying drawings illustrate apparatus useful in conducting a portion of the method whereby my new fuel can be produced.

Figure l is an elevation partly in section on line 00 Fig. 2, of a nest of retorts suit able for a final step in the production of this newly invented fuel. Fig. 2 is a vertical section on line 95 Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 3 is a plan of the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 4- is a view of a briquet of fuel made in accordance with this invention.

In carrying out this invention I first produce gas retort carbon from petroleum having an asphaltic base. This may be effected by any welLknown means and the amorphous carbon, known technically as gas retort carbon, which new forms a byproduct of the manufacture of gas from crude oil, well serves the purpose.

I will now describe sufficiently for the purpose of this application a method common in southern California by which such gas retort carbon is produced. Crude oil petroleum is subjected to suflicient heat in a retort or gas making apparatus and is thereby largelv transformed into gases which are conducted to a scrubber where by the action of water gas retort carbon is removed from the gases and appears on the surface of the water as it flows from the scrubber. The gas retort carbon thus produced is generally a bv-product but it is understood that the method is not limited to the use of such by- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 12, 1915.

Serial No. 680,124.

product for, as in some coke producing works where coke is the main product and gas a by-product, so my method also comprises the purposeful production of gas retort carbon as a main product and gas as a by-product from hydrocarbon oils. Said carbon is collected and then compressed and condensed into briquets of such density as to stand up under severe handling. Such briquets may be made by the simple operation of compression, but in the preferred method I add crude petroleum in suitable proportions, say about 1 part of oil to 10 parts of gas retort carbon by weight and thoroughly miX to produce a mechanical mixture before feeding to the briquet press, thus to form briquets of stronger and more solid character. Such briquets, however, still contain interstitial air and volatile constitutents liable to cause spontaneous combustion and also liable to produce smoky eminations during combustion of the products in open fireplaces, for instance. To eliminate this interstitial air and volatile constituents the briquets made as above set forth are then subjected to the action of heat without the direct application of flame from the heating medium and are brought to a red heat and maintained at such heat until practically all the interstitial air and volatile substances are driven off, or the character changed by chemical combination under the action of the heat thereby eliminating the danger of spontaneous combustion and liability to the emission of smoke when the briquets are subjected to combustion with atmospheric air. The briquets of the remaining material are then cooled in some desirable receptacle whereupon they are readv for use and the product is found to be a hard dense smooth-grained highlycarbonized material of greater specific gravity than common coke, having a con siderable degree of luster and being practically impervious to water.

In pract cal manufacture a nest of retorts 1 made of fire-clay or other strong high heating material may be provided in an oven 2 which may be of brick or other suitable material provided with suitable means as an oil or gas burner 3 for heating the retorts and the interior of the oven, a flue 4 being provided at one end of the oven to carry off the products cf combustion. The retorts 1 are L-shaped tubes open at both ends, the upper end a of the tube being longer than pipe 11 to emit the gases as they are driven off from the charge. The oven and retorts are heated to bring the briquetsto a red heat. The time during which application of such heat to the charge must be maintained,

will be determined by the flow of colored gas from the gas pipe. When such flow of gas ceases the door 5 will be opened and the contents of the retort discharged into a comparatlvely air tight receptacle, not

shown, so as to prevent undesirable oxidation of the product. When the product becomes sufficiently cooledso that the danger of such oxidation is passed the briquets may be removed and stored in the usual manner for storing common fuel. The fuel thus made is not liable to spontaneous combust1on and is found to be of a superior character for smelting purposes. Its specific gravity is greater than that of common coke and the material does not disintegrate during combustion.

The oil which I have used is crude petroleum having an asphaltic base and produced in southern California. The gas retort carbon therefrom may have a sensible ,pitchy quality and when condensed preparatory to the carbonizing process is hard and solid; but it does not have the same hardness' and strength as the completed carbonized product. The carbonizing is carried on throughout substantially in the absence of oxygen as the evolved gases exclude oxygen from the heated mass.

I claim 7 A new article of manufacture comprising the compressed carbonized product of a mechanical mixture of gas retort carbon and asphaltic oil.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 17th day of February, 1912.

WILLIAM HENRY ALDRICH. In presence of,

JAMES R. TOWNSEND, L. BELLE RICE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing'the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

